We have cataract surgery to remove the cataract, a natural aging process that clouds your natural lens, and replace it with a new clear intraocular implant lens. During cataract surgery a membrane (posterior capsule) of the lens is left in place to support the intraocular lens implant.
In some cases, the membrane supporting the lens implant will turn cloudy. This cloudy membrane interferes with good vision in a similar way that the cloudy cataract did. When this clouding develops, the YAG laser can be used to create an opening in the membrane (capsule) and clear your vision. Vision can be restored quickly and painlessly with this outpatient laser YAG PC procedure.
With a YAG Posterior Capsulotomy, the patient sits in a chair just like the regular eye exam station. Drops are placed into the eye to dilate and numb the eye. The doctor will place a small device on the eye itself and hold it there. The doctor focuses the YAG laser onto the cloudy posterior capsule using a special aiming beam. As the laser is activated a click may be heard and you may see a flashes of light. Multiple applications of the laser are usually required to create a new window in the cloudy capsule
